Janif: Incentives to boost investment
THE 2021-2022 National Budget has incentives which could boost investment in the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector which would allow for a more diverse range of employment opportunities for people in Fiji.
This was shared by the Business Process Outsourcing Council executive director Sagufta Janif.
“We have a thriving and resilient BPO industry, access to a talented young workforce and a strong service culture and now with the Government’s further support, we will be able to expedite the growth of our industry,” she said.
The BPO Council stated a 13year tax holiday and customs duty exemption were available for businesses engaged in software development, call centres, customer contact centres, engineering and design, research and development, animation and content creation, distance learning, market research, travel services, finance and accounting services, human resource services, compliance and provision of risk administration services.
“To further incentivise investments in the BPO sector, a 20-year tax holiday will be provided to BPO operators.
“To incentivise investment in buildings and other infrastructure development for the BPO sector, including costs incurred to meet the specific requirement of BPO operators, a new income tax incentive package will be offered to investors with the condition that 90 per cent of the income should be generated from BPO services.”
Further to the above incentives, the following income tax exemption will be provided, as stated by the council, like a 10-year tax holiday for investments ranging from $2 million to $5 million, a 15-year tax holiday for investments ranging from $5 million to $10 million and a 20-year tax holiday for investments above $10 million.
The Minister for Economy, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum had also announced a $F200,000 grant for the BPO Council to market Fiji as a premier outsourcing destination.
This grant was stated to be used to increase awareness of Fiji’s BPO industry and attract potential clients and BPO investors.
“We have a workforce, we have the data accessibility and we have the incentives in place to do extremely well in this industry,” Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said during the budget address.